


Not so Subtle

by Crazy_panda_25



Category: Whitechapel (TV)
Genre: Angst, Crush, Detectives, Fluff, Friendship Development, Kent is hopelessly in love with Chandler, M/M, Mansall actually being helpful, Post-Season 4, Teasing, laughing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2020-11-10
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:54:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27481534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crazy_panda_25/pseuds/Crazy_panda_25
Summary: Kent fiddles with his pen, toying with it between his fingers. The room is dimly lit, darkening as the sun drops in the sky not aided much by the faulty lights that are still flickering every now and then. Kent glanced around the quiet room, wondering whether or not everyone’s gone home~~~Kent and Mansall are working late at the office giving Mansell prime opportunity to tease and advise Kent on his conduct with a certain DI. Kent isn’t sure how useful or not useful his advise turns out to be
Relationships: Joseph Chandler/Emerson Kent, Or Kent wants it to be
Comments: 3
Kudos: 26





	Not so Subtle

Kent fiddles with his pen, toying with it between his fingers. The room is dimly lit, darkening as the sun drops in the sky not aided much by the faulty lights that are still flickering every now and then. Kent glanced around the quiet room, wondering whether or not everyone’s gone home. He knows Riley and Miles have, clocking off at the normal time they usually would. That’s what having a family to go home to causes.

“Daydreaming of the boss again?” Mansell’s voice makes him flinch, scowling at the older man when he flicks a pen at him but misses.

“Bugger off, why aren’t you anywhere but here?” Kent asks, picking the projectile up and placing it on his desk.

Mansell raises his eyebrows, “Ooo want some alone time with the DI, do you Kent-y?”

Chance would be a fine thing, Kent thinks.

“Just wait till I tell Erica.”

“Tell her what you want. You will anyway.”

“Boss’ gone home anyway, if you didn’t know. Skip’s orders, thinks he’s been working himself into the ground,” Mansell says, sitting heavily down on his chair, glancing over at the closed office door, “wouldn’t be far wrong if you ask me.”

“No one did,” Kent snaps, feeling defensive on Chandler’s part even with him not here.

“Alright alright, don’t get your knickers in a twist,” Mansell says, rolling his eyes, “Wouldn’t say it to him but I reckon Chandler’s the hardest working DI I’ve ever worked with. It’s odd really, seeing a DI so invested in everything.”

Kent finds himself nodding, “Even your fancy DI that you claim to have had a thing with?”

Mansell frowns, “Nah, she wasn’t good. Good shag, mind. Always wandering around the office telling us off for not making miracles. You know the sort? There’s plenty around ‘ere.”

“What, fast trackers?”

Mansell makes a face, leaning back to put him feet on the desk, “Dunno, maybe. Seemed like the sort.”

“Why’d you like her then?”

Kent doesn’t know why he’s interested, he’s not, not really. But Mansell’s the only one that’s been in a remotely similar position to him. Maybe he gets it, slightly at least. The other DC doesn’t seem to think it’s weird though, flinging his head back in thought.

“She was...attractive-“

Kent laughs, shaking his head, “That all? Really, how-“

Mansell elbows him, “Oi I’ve not finished. She was attractive and she had a drive of sorts. Right fire cracker if set off. Wouldn’t have ever worked though, she just enjoyed that power she had over me at work. Even transferred me after she dumped me.”

“Isn’t that violating like a million codes? You could sue her for that.”

Mansell shrugged, “Could’ve, didn’t. The team was lousy anyway, no use working on a door let alone a crime scene. Don’t know how we’re classed as the worse department.”

There’s a silence for a bit. Kent fiddles with his pen, wondering why Mansell is still here when he could be at home or, god forbid, with his sister.

“The boss is good at it, you know?”

Kent furrows his brows, giving Mansell a questioning look.

“Keeping things professional. Personal matters outside of work,” Mansell clarifies, smirking at him as though they’re sharing a secret between them. Maybe they are, “well other than the OCD thing and his phobia of drowning victims-“

“Not like they’re his fault.”

Mansell nods. Kent knows neither he nor Mansell are knowledgable about why drownings effect DI Chandler so much, they’ve talked about it before, subtly. He knows Mansell most likely wouldn’t tell him even if he did know and via versa but he knows when Mansell knows something he’s not meant to say. The skipper knows, Kent’s sure of it, but then there’s a lot more Miles knows about Chandler than he does. He pushes down the small spike of jealousy at this.

“What I mean is, if you two were to shag, he wouldn’t fire you or transfer you. If that’s what you’re worried about.”

Kent looks at him alarmed, glancing around the room instinctively to make sure no one else heard him.

“What the fuck Mansell? Just because you’re all ‘screw first and ask questions later’ doesn’t mean we all,” Kent snaps, taking a slow breath to calm his anger, “I’ve got no reason to believe he’s even interested let alone-“

“I’m gonna ignore that first comment,” Mansell says, looking quietly annoyed, “he said yes to drinks didn’t he?”

“Yeah then a van full of people exploded. Not sure his first problem at the time was ‘oh yeah let’s go indulge Kent on his awkward drink out.’”

“But he said yes before. So why wouldn’t he again?”

“I just-I dunno. I’m not talking about this with you,” Kent says firmly, eyeing Mansell suspiciously, “did Erica put you up to this.”

Mansell looks exactly like a child caught with his hand in the biscuit barrel.

“Not entirely? She told me to cheer you up or find out what’s bothering you. You haven’t rang her in a while apparently-“

Of course, of course it was all his sisters doing.

“And you think the boss is my problem?”

“You like him a lot, mate, you’re not subtle.”

“That doesn’t-oh fine whatever, you believe what you want.”

He grabs his coat standing up from his chair abruptly. Mansell laughs, making Kent feel stupid exactly as it always seemed to be with Mansell. He gets annoyed, he tries to storm out to make a point and Mansell just laughs and manages to make him feel like a moody teenager all over again. He almost hates him for it. 

“You put him on a pedestal too much, you know?” Mansell’s voice cuts off his inner contemplations of whether to leave or not.

Kent furrows his brow, “Come again?”

“The DI,” Mansell motions to the empty office as if to emphasise his point, “he’s great and all that but he’s still just a normal guy.”

Kent looks down at the coat clutched in his hand, contemplating, “I know he is, I don’t think he needs to be perfect to...” he stops himself before he says too much, “I don’t want to put his or my job on the line. Misconduct is serious...”

Mansell rolls his eyes, grabbing his own coat from the back of his chair and throwing it over his shoulder, “it wouldn’t be misconduct. I’m sure you wouldn’t be opposed to anything he may offer...”

Kent makes a noise to silence him, finding himself smirking as Mansell’s laugh echoes around the empty room. Maybe he wouldn’t be that bad of a friend after all


End file.
